Raphael Stevens

Seven out of 10 family offices said they have made direct investments in private companies, according to a new survey by Citi Private Bank.
Nearly half of these private investment firms increased their exposure in the past 12 months despite the trade war and market turmoil.
However, family offices are making fewer bets on early-stage firms and startups in favor of secondaries and leveraged buyouts.

Westend61 | Westend61 | Getty Images

A version of this article first appeared in CNBC’s Inside Wealth newsletter with Robert Frank, a weekly guide to the high-net-worth investor and consumer. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox.
Despite trade war turmoil and recession fears, investment firms of the ultra-wealthy are optimistic about their returns, according to a new survey by Citi Private Bank.

In a poll of 346 family offices, nearly half (45%) of respondents said they anticipated returns of 5% to 10% for the full-year 2025, and more than a third (38%) expected returns to exceed 10%. Only 4% anticipated flat performance or negative returns.
Accordingly, many family offices are making bullish bets, with seven out of 10 saying they had made direct investments in private companies over the past 12 months through mid-July. Of those firms, twice as many (40%) reported increasing or significantly increasing their exposure to direct deals than decreasing it. The respondents hailed from 45 countries and averaged $2.1 billion in net worth.
Hannes Hofmann, who leads Citi’s family office practice, told Inside Wealth that family offices are upping their exposure to risk assets as they are bullish about specific long-term trends — such as the artificial intelligence boom and the related demand for energy and new infrastructure — rather than individual asset classes.
“It’s a stock picker’s market,” he said. “It’s not being long or short sectors or asset classes. It’s having exposure to specific themes, and many of these themes are only implementable in the private market.”
That said, while the vast majority of family offices that make direct deals are either upping their exposure or maintaining it, optimism has dimmed from last year’s survey. A net 15% of respondents were bullish on direct private-equity investments, down from 36% in 2024.

Overall, the percentage of family offices reporting direct deals in the past 12 months fell from 77% to 70%. For North American family offices, which made up 40% of respondents, this share dropped from 86% to 77%.
Family offices also indicated less interest in early stage fundraises and startup or seed funding. Their preference for growth-stage investments held steady, which may be due to less perceived risk, according to the report. The decline was especially sharp for North American family offices, which reported drops of 17% and 11% in Series A or B and seed funding, respectively.

Hofmann said respondent base changes might account for the decline in family offices reporting direct investment activity. He said he has also observed that they’re being more selective, narrowing their sector focus and targeting companies that can draw larger rounds.
Hofmann added that family offices are making opportunistic plays as institutional investors like university endowments and pension funds turn to secondary sales during the exit slowdown. It helps that three-quarters of respondents reported owning controlling stakes in operating businesses.
“When other players have to sell their illiquid assets, family offices can come in and buy them,” he said. “With family offices, you’ve got a group of investors who get a reliable cash flow every year from operating businesses so they can afford to put more money into private equity.”
While interest in secondaries dipped by 2% overall, this was largely driven by a drop in activity by Asia Pacific family offices. North American family offices’ interest in secondaries increased from 19% to 29%, while firms in Latin America reported their interest edged up by a few percentage points.
Eight percent of family offices reported that acquiring a controlling stake in a company was a priority and another 14% said they were considering it.
“I think that’s a significant amount,” he said. “Family offices really believe that owning companies, getting exposure to themes and selecting the right companies are the long-term road to generating additional value.”

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Costco, Sam’s Club and BJ’s are all opening new locations, as more and younger U.S. consumers sign up for warehouse club memberships.
High inflation “brought the club channel more and more into focus,” said Bobby Griffin, a consumer analyst at equity research firm Raymond James.
Yet faster digital options, eye-catching brands and low-priced meals like sushi have also drawn in Gen Z and millennial consumers.

Costco Wholesale, Sam’s Club and BJ’s Wholesale stores.
Getty Images

On Costco’s last earnings call, executives were grilled about a problem few companies have: how is the company managing crowded stores and jammed-up parking lots?
That dilemma is a sign of the times for membership-based warehouse clubs. More Americans have literally joined the club — fueling growth for Costco, Walmart-owned Sam’s Club and BJ’s.

All three retailers are opening more locations across the country. Shares of the companies have shot up in the past five years, with Costco’s stock up about 215% and BJ’s up about 305% since the day the Covid pandemic began in March 2020. And Gen Z and millennial shoppers have helped fuel the club channel’s gains, as trendier brands and more convenient digital offerings attract younger shoppers.

High inflation “brought the club channel more and more into focus,” said Bobby Griffin, a consumer analyst at equity research firm Raymond James. The clubs have long been known as a place to buy cheaper gas or bulk packs of household staples for less.
Yet the companies have continued to “up the ante,” he said. Merchandise has gotten sharper, private label offerings have become stronger and the shopping experience has gotten more enjoyable as the retailers have spruced up stores and added more technology, he said.
Clubs have benefitted from an element of surprise, too. Along with selling bulk packs of paper towels and Keurig coffee pods, clubs have caught the attention of shoppers with items that tap into a desire for dupes or go viral on social media — such as Costco’s gold bars, which racked up more than $100 million in sales in a single quarter.
Along with the breakaway hit of gold bars, the many card-carrying members of Costco prompted an unusual message from the U.S. Transportation Security Administration this year. As the government agency phased in stricter requirements for ID cards, it announced across its social media accounts in June that Costco’s membership cards don’t count as a Real ID.

And Costco’s loyal fan following helped it to post strong sales — and attract support — despite some backlash for sticking by its diversity, equity and inclusion policies.
As they pick up newer and younger members, the warehouse clubs see more room for growth.
Sam’s Club earlier this year announced plans to open 15 clubs per year going forward, along with renovating its approximately 600 current clubs. It’s expanding its footprint again after shutting 63 locations across the country in 2018.
BJ’s plans to open 25 to 30 new clubs over the next two fiscal years. The smallest club player, which has historically had more locations on the East Coast, has broken into new markets like Texas by opening four locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
And Costco has stuck with an aggressive expansion plan of opening about 30 clubs per year, with just over half of those in the U.S. and the rest in other parts of the globe, CFO Gary Millerchip told CNBC. In early August, Costco opened four clubs in three different countries: Quebec, Canada; North Guadalajara, Mexico; The Villages in Florida and Richland, Washington.
Costco is opening some of its new locations this year in existing markets where its clubs are crowded, Millerchip said.

Club retailers still face pressure, though, including an uncertain job market and tariffs. The companies have laid out strategies to reduce their hit from the duties: Costco leaders, for example, said on an earnings call that they diverted imported merchandise with high tariffs to their warehouse clubs in other parts of the world instead of the U.S.
Clubs’ rotating brands and treasure hunt approach could reduce their vulnerability to tariffs. While the retailers sell imported merchandise like furniture and clothing, the bulk of sales come from groceries, and the retailers could swap out or drop an item hit by high tariffs, Griffin said.
BJ’s will carry more holiday items this year from the U.S. or countries with lower tariff exposure, said Bill Werner, BJ’s executive vice president of strategy and development.
As retailers digest the long-term effects of tariffs, Costco will give the latest read on its business, and the club channel, when it reports earnings on Thursday.

Sushi dinners and speedier shopping

The desire for both convenience and cheaper food options has been a boon to warehouse clubs in recent years. Instead of ordering from a restaurant, customers have turned to club chains to deliver dinner.
Earlier this year, Sam’s Club’s rotisserie chicken, which costs $4.98, and its hot pizzas, which cost $8.98 apiece, joined the list of items that members can get dropped at their doors. And starting last year, the retailer began setting up sushi stations where chefs make fresh rolls, which start at around $8 for a roll, in front of customers each day. It recently made sushi available for curbside pickup and delivery, too.
Those are examples of the way that warehouse clubs — notoriously low-tech and low-frills — have flipped the script in the digital age.

Sam’s Club has added sushi stations to its stores where chefs make the rolls fresh. The sushi can also be delivered by same-day delivery to customers’ homes.
Courtesy of Sam’s Club

In the past, shoppers made a tradeoff for lower prices at clubs, Sam’s Club CFO Todd Sears said. They faced long lines, waited to get receipts checked at the store exit and navigated a maze of aisles when trying to find an item.
“Experience wasn’t a huge element of the club channel,” Sears said in an interview. “In fact, it was kind of billed as the experience might be a little bit worse, but you’re going to make up for it with value.”
Now, curbside pickup, home delivery and new store tech has made the shopping experience faster and more pleasant, he said.
“Someone coming home for work can pop in and get out within three minutes and have a meal for home,” Sears said, noting the company is seeing more frequent club visits instead of just huge stock-ups.
Sam’s Club, in particular, has used tech to stand out from competitors. Customers can skip the checkout line by using Scan & Go, a feature in the retailer’s app that allows shoppers to ring up their own items while browsing the aisles. About 40% of its transactions are through Scan & Go, Sears said.
It’s leaned on other tech, too, including automated floor scrubbers that free up employees’ time to help customers and high-tech archways at the exits that verify most purchases automatically instead of requiring an employee to manually check a receipt.
BJ’s, too, has capitalized on speedier digital options that appeal to busy families and younger shoppers. E-commerce sales at the club jumped 34% in the most recent quarter compared to the year-ago period. CEO Bob Eddy described the digital gains as a “generational unlock” that’s attracted busy families and younger shoppers.
Digital offerings have become a popular and lucrative part of BJ’s business, Werner said. Same-day delivery orders tend to be about 25% to 30% bigger baskets than in-club shops, he said. It charges a $15 fee for the deliveries, or members can pay $100 per year for unlimited same-day deliveries.
Still, Werner said BJ’s biggest selling point “comes back to value” with its pledge to undercut typical grocery store prices by roughly 25%. Food and household essentials like laundry detergent drive about 85% of its sales, he said.

At Costco, the largest club player by size and stock price, have more than doubled over the last decade. Yet digital sales, while growing, account for only a small part of its overall sales.
About 8% of Costco’s business comes from e-commerce, excluding third-party deliveries from Instacart and travel bookings, CEO Ron Vachris said on the company’s May earnings call.
Over half of members have downloaded Costco’s app, but its digital business is still in the early stages, Millerchip said on the company’s earnings call. He said as Costco will keep adding customer-friendly features, such as making it easier to search for items or save a credit card to speed up checkout.
“We still see it [e-commerce] as an area where we’d expect to outpace our overall growth,” he said on its earnings call.

A customer pushes a shopping cart towards the entrance of a BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings Inc. location in Miami, Florida.
Scott McIntyre | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Younger shoppers, trendier brands

The retailers’ membership counts reflect how the U.S. has become a club nation.
Costco had nearly 80 million paid household members globally as of the end of its most recent quarter, which ended in mid-May. BJ’s, the smallest of the three club names, has grown to about 8 million members as of the most recently reported quarter, a 55% increase since it went public seven years ago.
Sam’s Club does not disclose its membership total, but its membership income grew nearly 8% in the U.S. in the most recent quarter. And its gains inspired the retailer to pledge this spring that it would double its membership over the next eight to 10 years.
Yet that growth is coming from a different kind of member. Along with soccer moms and big families, it’s drawn more Gen Z and millennial consumers. Those members include new homeowners, households without kids, and city dwellers who don’t have mortgages or abundant pantry space.
Sam’s Club’s fastest growing customer category is Gen Z and millennials, which have accounted for half of its membership growth for more than two years, Sears said.

Customers look over clothing items displayed on April 18, 2025 at a Costco branch in Niantic, Connecticut.
Robert Nickelsberg | Getty Images

Costco’s Millerchip told CNBC that its average age of members has fallen, and just under half of its new members that sign up each year are now under age 40. He said the club’s popularity during the Covid pandemic, the ease of digital sign-ups and increased social media attention on Costco all contributed to that trend.
Customers between the ages of 25 and 34 are the fastest growing spending segment of the club channel when it comes to merchandise outside of the grocery department, according to market research firm Circana.
That age group’s spending on general merchandise at clubs rose by 3% for January to July 2025 compared to the same period in the year prior, according to Circana, which tracks checkout data across retailers.
All three warehouse clubs have broadened their merchandise and bulked up digital options, particularly since the Covid pandemic, said Marshal Cohen, a chief industry advisor for Circana.
Along with lower-priced private label versions of items like olive oil and paper towels, clubs carry children’s clothing and back-to-school supplies, sell giftable items like jewelry and offer lower-priced health and wellness items like hearing aids, contact lenses and vitamins. That’s given shoppers more reasons to return to their stores and websites between stock-ups.
“They’re curating not only the brands better, but creating a better sense of adventure for the shopper,” he said.
Plus, he said the “great migration” of younger Americans during the pandemic from smaller apartments in cities to bigger homes in the suburbs or rural areas created a new customer base.
The improved merchandise at clubs has caught the attention and ire of competitors as well. Lululemon filed a lawsuit against Costco in late June, alleging that the company violated patents by selling lower-priced dupes of its athleisurewear including hoodies, jackets and pants.
Costco’s CFO Millerchip declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Clubs have drawn both young and more established brands that want to get picked up by the retailers.
Wellness brand Frida, best known for popular baby supplies like the NoseFrida, is exploring how its products could be packaged and sold in a club, founder and CEO Chelsea Hirschhorn said. She said the club channel has become more appealing as it moves away from generic products and adds more modern brands.
For some members, including Patrick Bannon, club retailers’ eye-catching assortment can be a danger to the wallet. The 29-year-old graduate student joined Costco about two years ago. At least every other month, he drives to a nearby Costco for a shopping trip — even though the drive can take 45 minutes in traffic and on weekend and evening visits, it can be tricky to “move your cart more than an inch without running into somebody.”
For Bannon, it takes creativity to squeeze bulk purchases into the cabinets, freezer and fridge space of the one-bedroom apartment in the Boston area that he rents with his girlfriend.
In his apartment, he has currently stashed away five different types of protein bars, two pounds of frozen vegetables, two one-gallon jugs of vegetable oil and three or four pounds of frozen chicken.
He signed up for Costco to buy cheaper groceries and staples like trash bags, but he’s wound up purchasing giant bags of snacks, a new brand of cold brew coffee and even khaki pants.
“You get to be a kid in the candy store again,” he said. “Except it’s not all candy.” More

President Donald Trump has suggested his administration should revoke the licenses of broadcast TV stations that he said are “against” him.
The threats are putting an in-the-weeds part of the media business front and center for consumers, and flexing the government’s power over a major part of the industry. 
Networks such as Disney’s ABC, Paramount Skydance’s CBS, Comcast Corp.’s NBC and Fox Corp.’s Fox must have over-the-air spectrum licenses in order to broadcast.

A sign is seen outside of the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” show outside the El Capitan Entertainment Centre on Hollywood Boulevard, from where the show is broadcast in Hollywood, California on Sept. 18, 2025.
Frederic J. Brown | AFP | Getty Images

Disney’s decision this week to pull “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” from its broadcast network ABC is shining a light on a part of the media business over which the federal government has control. 
On Thursday, President Donald Trump suggested his administration should revoke the licenses of broadcast TV stations that he said are “against” him. Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr has made similar threats, including during a CNBC interview, also on Thursday.

It’s not the first time Trump or Carr has invoked the government’s power to pull a broadcast station license — putting an in-the-weeds part of the media business front and center for consumers, and flexing the government’s power over a major part of the industry. 

What’s a broadcast license?

Let’s start with the basics: Networks such as Disney’s ABC, Paramount Skydance’s CBS, Comcast Corp.’s NBC and Fox Corp.’s Fox are part of a system that requires them to obtain over-the-air spectrum licenses from the federal government in order to broadcast these household-name stations. 
That means free, over-the-air service to anyone with an antenna on their TV. 
Pay-TV networks such as CNN, MTV or FX, for example, are considered “over-the-top” and available for subscription fees. They’re often bundled together and distributed by companies such as Comcast, Charter Communications or DirecTV. 
Broadcasters such as ABC are known for programming that includes local news, live sports, prime-time sitcoms and dramas, as well as late-night shows such as “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

Although the way consumers watch these programs has significantly changed from the days of using an antenna for free viewership — now they’re often viewed via pay-TV bundles, plus the content is frequently found on streaming platforms — the model has remained largely the same. 
Companies that own local broadcast TV stations, such as Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair, license spectrum — or the public airwaves — from the government, with the FCC in control. 
Through this public spectrum for radio and TV stations, the federal agency has the right to regulate broadcasting and requires each network “by law to operate its station in the ‘public interest, convenience and necessity.’ Generally, this means it must air programming that is responsive to the needs and problems of its local community of license,” according to the FCC website.

Can Trump and the FCC revoke licenses?

That definition of serving the “public interest” is what the FCC’s Carr has zeroed in on with conversations around revoking licenses. 
On Thursday, Carr told CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” that comments by Kimmel, linking the suspect in the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk to Trump’s MAGA movement, were “not a joke,” and instead, he said, were “appearing to directly mislead the American public about … probably one of the most significant political events we’ve had in a long time.” 
When Trump has noted the government’s right to take away licenses — both this week and in the past — he has pointed to what he said is bias against him as president. 
“I have read someplace that the networks were 97% against me, again, 97% negative,” Trump said Thursday, referring to his 2024 election victory. 
“They give me only bad publicity, press. I mean, they’re getting a license,” Trump said. “I would think maybe their license should be taken away.” 

People protest at the El Capitan Entertainment Centre, where “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” was recorded for broadcast, following his suspension for remarks he made regarding Charlie Kirk’s assassination, on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, U.S. Sept. 18, 2025.
David Swanson | Reuters

In August, Trump accused networks ABC and NBC of being “two of the worst and most biased networks in history” and suggested revoking their broadcast licenses.
Carr earlier this year, freshly in his post as FCC chairman, reawakened complaints directed at ABC, NBC and CBS from the conservative organization the Center for American Rights. 
And in February, during a conversation at Semafor’s “Innovating to Restore Trust in News” summit in Washington, D.C., he suggested the agency would be looking closely at licenses. 
“If you’re going to have a license to be a broadcaster, it comes with something called ‘you have to serve the public interest.’ If you don’t want to do that, that’s OK,” Carr said during the summit. “I will give you the address of the FCC … you’re free to turn your license in and you can go podcast and you go over-the-top.” 

What happens if ABC or NBC loses its license? 

If the federal government deems a broadcast TV network isn’t acting in the public interest, it can revoke the license from the station’s owner, and the local station would effectively go dark in its market. 
The local networks can preempt the programming, meaning air something other than what the broader network is offering up. That would theoretically keep the stations in compliance if the FCC were to find the broadcast content unlawful. But it’s unclear where that line would fall. 
The process of revoking a license isn’t so simple, according to Roy Gutterman, a professor and expert on communications law and the First Amendment at Syracuse University’s Newhouse School.
“There’s a whole process before you can yank someone’s license,” Gutterman said, adding that the matter would be subject to an investigation and procedure — and would likely garner legal challenges. 
Typically, the discussion of whether a station violated the FCC’s guidelines centers around children’s programming, a cut to news content, or obscenity — such as Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction during the Super Bowl in 2004.
Trump and his administration’s threats take a different tack.
“This is such an unprecedented issue,” Gutterman said. “Responsible use of the airwaves doesn’t mean having the political language [the government] doesn’t want on there … Responsible use isn’t a political issue.”

Pressure mounting

There’s another factor at play here: The government’s role in local TV consolidation.
On Wednesday, before ABC sidelined Kimmel, Nexstar announced its stations affiliated with ABC wouldn’t air the late night show and instead would preempt it “for the foreseeable future” due to the host’s statements. 
While Disney owns a portion of its ABC-affiliated networks, Nexstar, as well as Sinclair — which similarly said it would preempt the show — own the vast majority. Nexstar owns about 30 ABC-affiliated networks across the U.S., or 10% of the more than 200 stations Nexstar owns in total.
Nexstar is currently seeking government approval of a $6.2 billion deal to merge with fellow broadcast TV station owner Tegna, which would upend longstanding regulations for broadcast station owners. 
Sinclair has also said it’s looking to merge its broadcast TV station business with another competitor, although a deal has yet to be announced. 
While Nexstar and its peers have bulked up over the years through acquisitions, they’ve been subject to longstanding federal limits on the number of stations that these parent companies can own. 

On Tuesday, May 13, 2025 at North Javits in New York City, an incredible roster of all-star talent will tout their connections to storytelling, Disney, and each other while showcasing their latest projects for the upcoming year.
Michael Le Brecht | Disney General Entertainment Content | Getty Images

Following Trump’s election in November, leaders of the station owners — as well as other media businesses — saw an opening for further consolidation and deals. 
The FCC’s Carr has also publicly said in recent months that he would support getting rid of broadcast station ownership rules and caps, paving the way for such deals, which could help salvage a business model that’s being disrupted. 
With the rise of streaming, the pay-TV ecosystem has bled consumers, and broadcast TV networks and local affiliates have also felt the effects. 
While the stations are free to air, distributors such as Charter pay the broadcasters so-called retransmission fees, on a per-subscriber basis, for the right to carry the stations. These lucrative fees heavily buoy the profits of companies such as Nexstar, which means dwindling pay-TV customers cuts into broadcast profits. 
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal, which owns CNBC. Versant would become the new parent company of CNBC under a planned spinoff. More

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s hand-picked vaccine panel weakened Covid shot recommendations in the U.S., advising that all Americans consult a health-care provider before deciding whether to receive the vaccine.
The group also voted to emphasize that the Covid vaccine is beneficial for those at high risk of severe illness from the disease.
The vote comes after Kennedy appointed several vocal critics of mRNA Covid shots to the panel after ousting all previous members in June.

Members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices listen to a presentation about Covid-19 during an ACIP meeting at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Sept. 19, 2025.
Alyssa Pointer | Reuters

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s hand-picked vaccine panel on Friday weakened Covid shot recommendations in the U.S., advising that all Americans consult a health-care provider before deciding whether to receive the vaccine.
The 12-member panel, called the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, recommended that people 6 months and up receive vaccines based on so-called “shared clinical decision-making,” which refers to a decision process between a health-care provider and a patient or their guardian. The group also voted to emphasize that for those under 65, the Covid vaccine is most beneficial for those at high risk of severe illness from the disease.

The guidance breaks from previous years, where the committee recommended that all Americans ages 6 months and up receive an updated Covid shot. 
While ACIP did not restrict the use of the Covid vaccine, the panel’s softer recommendation may further confuse Americans about whether to take a shot and make it more difficult for them to access one. ACIP sets recommendations on who should receive certain shots and which vaccines insurers must cover at no cost. 
The panel’s chair, Martin Kulldorff, said it was his understanding that the new recommendation means that government-run insurance plans will still cover Covid vaccines. But it’s unclear if all private health plans will maintain coverage of the shots.
The CDC, whose latest director was ousted by the Trump administration earlier this month, still has to adopt the panel’s recommendations. 
The vote is no surprise, as Kennedy appointed several vocal critics of mRNA Covid shots to the panel after ousting all previous members in June. During the meeting Friday, some members cast doubt on the safety and efficacy of Covid shots and mRNA technology, and questioned the reliability of data on hospitalization rates due to the virus.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Retsef Levi speaks during an Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meeting at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Sept. 19, 2025.
Alyssa Pointer | Reuters

It also follows Kennedy’s other recent moves to change U.S. Covid vaccine policy, which have created new hurdles for some people to access vaccines, including prescription requirements in certain states. The CDC dropped Covid shot recommendations for healthy children and pregnant women, and the Food and Drug Administration approved new Covid jabs with limits on who can get them. 
The ability to get vaccines may vary by state: In a break from federal guidelines, four Democratic states on Wednesday recommended that broad swaths of the population receive an updated Covid shot, including “all who choose protection.” Still, the new recommendations could weaken vaccination rates against the virus and heighten the threat of the disease spreading. 
A study published Thursday in JAMA Network Open showed that sticking to a universal Covid vaccine recommendation in the U.S., the guidance that has been in place in recent years, has the potential to prevent thousands more hospitalizations and deaths than limiting the advisory to high-risk groups. 
Numerous studies have demonstrated that shots using mRNA technology, including Covid vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, are safe and effective, and serious side effects have happened in extremely rare cases. One paper in August estimates that Covid vaccines saved more than 2 million lives, mostly among older adults, worldwide between 2020 and October 2024. 
In a statement Friday, Pfizer said the company and its partner BioNTech “remain steadfast in our dedication to vaccine safety, quality and effectiveness through constant safety monitoring and ongoing research.”
One major health insurance group on Wednesday said its member plans will cover all vaccines already recommended by ACIP, including updated Covid and flu shots, despite any changes the new slate of appointees makes this week. Member plans of the group, America’s Health Insurance Plans, collectively provide coverage and services to over 200 million Americans. That includes more than a dozen Blue Cross Blue Shield plans, Centene, CVS’ Aetna, Elevance Health, Humana, Kaiser Permanente, Molina, and Cigna.

Debating Covid vaccines

One ACIP member, Retsef Levi, a professor of operations management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, led a work group that reviewed data and proposed recommendations around Covid vaccines. Levi’s presentation on the group’s findings questioned the safety and efficacy of Covid shots and cast doubt on mRNA technology.
“We have a range of things on the mRNA platforms that really suggest that it doesn’t work as intended,” said Levi, who has previously pushed to stop giving mRNA shots.
He said the majority of the work group felt that individual decisions on whether to receive a Covid vaccine are “appropriate” and specifically, that people should now have to obtain prescriptions for the shot. “You get to a level of nuance” where some patients may have recent prior infections or different comorbidities that should be discussed with a physician as part of a prescription, Levi said. 
But one work group member, Dr. Henry Bernstein, said during another presentation that “shared clinical decision-making and a need for a prescription creates barriers” to Covid vaccine access. 
“Simple, stable recommendations can increase vaccine coverage,” said Bernstein, a professor of pediatrics at Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. “Covid-19 vaccines are highly safe and effective.” He is not a member of Kennedy’s panel who votes on recommendations.
“Covid-19 vaccination matters for pregnant women, pediatric patients, especially those less than two years of age, people 65 years and older, those of any age with a weakened immune system, medical conditions, and anyone who feels they want protection for themselves or their families,” he said.  More